The Bum Hierarchy in the Land of Bumdom

Formerly homeless myself, for about six months,in two different states, I have experienced this on a personal basis. My story is elsewhere on this blog. The NW is inundated by bums looking for handouts and is one of the top 5 states for homelessness (Bumdom). Being homeless does not mean you have to be a “bum”.


Among the homeless and down trodden of society, there exists a class hierarchy. It is as apparent to see, as the difference between a coal miner in West Virginia, and a stockbroker on Wall Street.

“In the land of bums, a bum with $1 is king!”
I believe it is recognized both within the Bumdom and to those in “normal” society. Picture the “food pyramid” and beginning from top to bottom, the levels of Bumdom follow:

On top are the recently homeless…from job loss, foreclosure, etc. Normal folks, educated, moral, but without money. They don’t think of themselves as bums, more a victim of economic events….and a temporary situation.

Next are those who have been on the streets for a while. They include recent ex-cons, divorced, former military, etc. They are willing to seek and desire Government Services and help. They follow procedures and hope to better themselves.

The third level is the wandering mentally ill. They number in the hundreds in any given city, thanks to Ronald Reagan’s policies closing the Mental Hospitals in the US. Many have no clue of even who they are, wandering aimlessly, arguing with pigeons and invisible opponents. They deserve to be in a safe, warm institution, not living on the streets.

Fourth will include the tweakers, alcoholics, and IV drug users, who prey on each other and steal to supply their addictive habits. Pupils the size of pin heads, manic laughter, twitching, nervous behavior are very evident. At least 50% of all social services are aimed at ‘saving” this group. Friggen Liberals.

The fifth level of the hierarchy of bums is reserved for the “gutter punks”, 15- 22 yr old run aways, school drop outs, hippie wannabees, who dress in black with old army clothes, have numerous piercing and tattoos, trade sex for drugs, pan handle, and run scams. They usually have a pet Pit Bull, dragging along. They are the most violent and one of the largest groups. Punks are rude and generally disgusting.

Finally at the bottom of the bum barrel are the chronic homeless, the professional bum. They live on the street by choice, many for decades. They answer to no one, hate all authority and rules. Many stink from few washings, urine, feces, puke, etc. They couldn't’t get in a homeless shelter even if they wanted to, and they don’t want to. They are the worst of the worst and include all of the above groups. They can’t and don’t want to be “saved”.

This is the hierarchy of bums in the Bumdom. Millions may exist in the USA, in every major city and lost in the wilderness. The true numbers are down played by the Government, perhaps by as much as 50%. Services are limited and severely under funded. As the economy worsens, the numbers will explode. Here in the NW, there is already a 50% increase over last year. In the downtown core, the homeless sometimes out number the normal citizens who shop and work there.

Sunday, not Monday

NW and life update: I think, therefore I offend. No really, I listen to the old folks at the "Home" tell their stories about previous wealth and social position, yet all are now on Section 8, and suffer from numerous health problems. What's the point?

They sound like the Portland Trail Blazers, making excuses for being "beaten like a circus monkey" last night. Waaaaaaaaaa, NBA wannabees!

Sunny and nice for a few days, except for the tree pollen which seems to annoy me, that and a few blood sucking bed bugs. They don't hurt when they bite, but my bed sheets look like I've been bedding virgins! When pigs fly!

Very quiet today actually, where do the bums go on Sunday? They sleeping in? It's 12:00 noon.....hello? Nothing on TV, except those damn "paid programs". When did that crap start? I remember back in the 1950's and 60's they had old movies on in the afternoon. Chill, order a pizza with a quart bottle of red cream soda and veg. That is when I wasn't out in the woods building forts, man traps, and bombs with black gunpowder. Dang, those where the good old days!

Nothing more to report, will head to the river on the streetcar, and watch mega yachts tied to the docks, they never leave.

The Birth of the Special Forces

Today concepts like unconventional warfare and covert operations are universally known and are a common site on the news in hot spots like Afghanistan. Every branch of the military has elite units of troops to handle highly dangerous and specialized operations. Politicians have grown to rely on them to handle sensitive matters quickly and discretely. There have always been elite fighting units. This idea of specially trained troops being used for special missions has is origins in World War II when the Allies needed a new breed of warriors to wage a clandestine war against the Axis powers. The man who spearheaded this effort was Aaron Bank. He would build Special Forces from the ground up and the face of modern warfare forever.

When World War II broke out Aaron Bank was in his forties and considered to be old for combat duty, so in order to get in on the action he joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) the United States intelligence agency that would later become the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Since he had traveled in Europe, spoke several languages and was a skilled athlete he was just the type of man they needed. The problem was that the OSS had no experienced guerilla warfare experts, so Bank and other recruits went to train in Scotland along side experienced British instructors who had fought in Yugoslavia, Greece, and France. They learned many things included communications, sabotage, and most importantly close combat techniques. Martial arts expert William E. Fairbairn taught the Americans everything he knew about hand-to-hand combat including real world self defense techniques and sentry removal using knives and other weapons.

Once his training was complete Bank parachuted into Nazi occupied France with other commandos to aid French in their guerilla war against the Germans. Along with fighting the enemy he had to coordinate between the two resistance groups. With blades, bullets, and bravery the commandos terrorized the Germans day and night until the Allies invaded in force. He would even recruit a company-size unit of anti-Nazi Germans for a mission to capture Hitler. Bank and other OSS operatives supported, trained and fought along side allied partisans in Europe and Asia and let them know they weren't alone in their fight. They were teachers and warriors who made difference.

Were they effective? General Dwight D. Eisenhower said that in France the OSS and the French resistance did the equivalent of 15 divisions and the OSS had similar results in other areas of the war. Even though OSS other Special Forces units were successful it still took Bank years to convince the Army to create a permanent branch of Special Forces for future conflicts. Eventually Army Secretary Frank Pace gave him the green light to begin organizing and recruiting. Since all Special Forces units had been disbanded after the war Bank had his choice of recruits from units like, the First Special Service Force, Merrill's Marauders and even former guerilla fighters from Europe. Highly trained, battle tested and experts in martial arts and close combat these men would be the first Green Berets.

Aaron Bank retired from the military in 1958, but continued to be an advocate for Special Forces troops arguing that a few well trained soldiers fighting along side indigenous fighters could make more of an impact than conventional forces. In the 1970's he fought to improve security as nuclear power plants and was openly critical of how Special Forces troops were used in several conflicts. In 1995 Congress declared Bank "The Father of the Green Berets," and in 2002 the year the great warrior celebrated his 100th birthday President George W. Bush thanked him for developing the unconventional warfare programs that are still in use today against terrorists. He proved that with the right training, equipment, and most importantly the right mindset that a handful of soldiers could make a big difference in combat. Like the cadence says, "When there is trouble in the world today count on the men in the Green Beret."

Types of martial arts & martial arts styles

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Pehush

Tax Day...Time to Pay Up!

The patriotic duty of all wage earning Americans...pay taxes so that others may live!

OMG, Rush Limbaugh was on the rant this AM about taxing the rich. Whine, Whine.....they(the rich) work hard and deserve every dollar they get. Yeah, on the backs of wage slaves. The greedy are running scared, looming socialism their worst nightmare. The real reason for the hate and fear of Russian Communism during the cold war.... fear of losing their wealth and ill gotten gains from the backs of the working class. They should be scared!

Today "Tea Parties" are the main game in cities across America. Bah, bulldookey.

April 2009........So Far, So Good

Been hold up in my apartment, barely able to function with a painful neck (arthritis, and throbbing headache) for two days. None ending rain doesn't help. Thought it was my "light" stretching exercise from Monday, working my neck muscles. I tweaked my neck on waking this AM and "pop", something aligned..."poof", pain gone! The scary part.....it could go the other way and I'd be flopping on the floor like a carp!

Enough about me. Getting ready to cross the river, to get a new hard drive for my PC and some cleaning supplies at the dollar store before the rains begin again in earnest. Then it's down to the Senior Center for lunch and more PC action on the slow Internet (all those bored Spring Breakers).

My life is full.